Desert Misfits
by Kissa-chan
Summary: How did Gippal lose his eye? A short fic on one possible explanatioin. (Ripple) Please read and review.


Standard disclaimers apply.  
  
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Sweltering heat blistered through the air, blurring the horizon and scorching everything. Hot and gritty hand shifted under her bare, burning feet, reminding her of why losing one's shoes in the desert was a horrible idea. She raised one hand, shading her swirly green Al Bhed eyes and scanning the horizon for any sign of the place her father was building. The place that they would call Home.  
  
The Al Bhed race had finally found unity under her father. Banding together, they had begun construction on the massive building in the middle of the Bikenel dessert. The place they would call Home, Rikku thought angrily. Because of Yevon, she had to make her home in the unyielding heat of Bikenel Island. Because of Yevon, her old home of the shores of the Moonflow was gone forever.  
  
She felt tears welling up in her eyes and brushed them aside angrily. She had to think positive. Negative thoughts..... they were nothing but trouble. She had to stay cheery and bright. Optimistic. She also had to find some sort of shelter before the threatening sandstorm hit.   
  
She started jogging, easily moving through the burning sands. She was small for her age, and for the most part was overlooked by the dessert fiends. They had better things to do then harass one seven year old girl. And Rikku generally didn't notice them either.   
  
She felt the sand shift under her feet and toppled foreword, balance lost. "Tysh!" she cursed hotly, picking herself up and looking around nervously. She wasn't supposed to be cursing and if anyone had heard........ But the dessert remained vacant of fellow human life. She sighed and dropped onto her butt, itching at the sand that had somehow embedded itself in her hair and scalp.  
  
The sand started blowing harder. It bit into her skin, urging her back to her feet. It was looking like the sandstorm was going to hit before she managed to get to shelter. She got to her feet, still scratching her head and started running again.  
  
She had decided to run away from her new soon-to-be 'home' in the dessert. It had felt like a good idea at first. With the death of her mother on the banks of the Moonflow, her father had gotten..... strange. He was always busy, and never had time for her anymore. It was wrong and made her want to cry.  
  
Her older brothers, Keyakku and Brother, took things in their own way. Rikku suspected that Keyakku was okay with everything. He was, after all, old enough to help with the building of Home. He wasn't getting shuffled to the side like Brother and her were.   
  
They spent their time tucked away in a tent, protected from the harsh environment and slowly going crazy. Especially Brother. Maybe if it had been just her he could have tolerated it, but the tent was for all the Al Bhed children. At least, what Rikku assumed were all the kids, she spent a lot of time trying to get out and away from the tent. The only kid in particular that she ever noticed was Gippal, and subsequently, he was also the reason that Brother went stark raving mad in the tent.  
  
Gippal was, well it was hard to classify him as anything. Mostly, she found him irritating. He was older then her and therefore, less intelligent. Obviously he couldn't be very smart at all if he didn't even remember her name. He was always calling her 'Cid's little girl.'   
  
There wasn't anything different about Gippal. He had spiky blond and two sparkling Al Bhed eyes. Personally, Rikku like Gippal's eyes. They were pretty. Emerald gems shining from beneath his heavy lashes. And that about summed Gippal up in her opinion. He was pretty and he was irritating. All in all, he was pretty irritating.  
  
She didn't have time for him. She spent her time trying to get out of the tent, and finally, she had succeeded. Now she was lost in the dessert.  
  
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Long strings of saliva dribbled from the massive maw at the top end of the fiend. It's massive tubular body was covered in a heavy weather resistant hide. From somewhere within and massive sandworm, a low and dangerous sound was emerging. It swayed in front of the seven year old escapee, blocking her path to safety.   
  
Rikku could see the camp in the distance. The olive green tent where she was supposed to be looked rather inviting suddenly. She had escaped and gotten lost. Her body was hot and covered in sand like never before. Her feet ached from walking across the burning sands of Bikenel. Her tongue felt like heavy glue in her mouth and her lips were parched and cracked.   
  
She was also scared. Against the ruby red of the setting sun, the fiend seemed to be bathed in crimson blood. It looked like death and it's rancid breath felt smothering. It closed it's mouth, whipping it's head towards her small form.  
  
Rikku jumped back, screaming as the sand it's head struck spewed into the air way over her head. The entire ground seemed to tremble and she fell onto her butt, starring up at the fiend in open-mouthed terror.  
  
The dark gap seemed to be getting bigger, turning into a monstrous maw. Small particles of sand started flying towards the mouth. For a second, she was relieved. Then she her body shifted with the sand and she realized that it meant to eat her. Terrified, she couldn't make her body move. She couldn't beat the creature, but worse then that, she couldn't escape.  
  
She closed her eyes, trying to resist the pull of it's vacuum-like mouth. Her small fingers dug uselessly through the sand, searching for some sort of handhold and finding only ever shifting grains of golden sand. "HELP!" she screamed at the top of her lungs. But even as the words left her mouth, she knew that no one would come. There wasn't even a chance that they realized she was gone yet. She had made sure of it.  
  
Her escape had been planned perfectly. She had hoped to be miles away from the camp before she was discovered. It had all been perfect. She had done everything right. As far as anyone would know, she hadn't been feeling well, so she had turned in for a nap. She had done the same thing several times recently, getting them used to the idea that she could sleep all day.   
  
One week ago, she hadn't even got checked on once during her sleep all day ploy. It made everything that much simpler. She waited until Maize was on baby-sitting duty. He was always reading and tinkering with machina bits. He was less fussy then the rest of the sitters. That meant her stuffed bed had yet to be discovered. That meant she was going to die.......  
  
Desperately, she called out again. "HELP MEEEEEEE!" Her words felt painful emerging from her dry throat and tears of desperation burned at her eyes. And every moment drew her closer to the gapping maw of the sandworm.  
  
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Gippal threw a careful glance over the room. Everyone seemed to be busy and preoccupied. Maize had taken care of that. The hover bike in the middle of the room that he was letting them help repair was making even the idiot, Brother, giddy with excitement. It kept them all away from him and ....... her.  
  
Cid's little girl. Rikku. She wasn't feeling well again. It was starting to worry Gippal. Somehow she always seemed to be getting sick. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't have dared to sneak in and see her. If there was a chance that he get caught and declared soft...... well, he couldn't risk it.  
  
But who was going to catch him nom? They were all playing with the hover that maize had brought. Everyone was occupied and Rikku was asleep. He'd go look at her, make sure that she was okay..... and give her something....... A gift, something that he thought she might like.  
  
The Nursery Tent had separate rooms for all the children and was actually really big. Gippal usually didn't venture into this area of the tent. Everything was split in half and right now, he was on the girls side of the tent. Rikku's side. He passed behind the curtain leading into her bedroom.   
  
She was sleeping. Or at least that was what he assumed at first. Her blankets looked like there was someone under them and her blond hair was just visible under the covers.   
  
That was okay with him. "Hey, Rikku," he said, enjoying the feel of her name on his tongue and finding that strange. He had wanted to call her by her name for a while, but how could he? She was a newcomer to the group of children. Up until a year ago she had lived on the banks of the Moonflow.   
  
He had been born in the dessert and had been a member of the Bikenel Tribe. After Cid had united all the scattered Al Bhed tribes, it was decided that their new Home would be on Bikenel Island. Cid had come to the island and brought his children with him. Keyakku, Brother, and Rikku.  
  
Being the oldest, Keyakku didn't have to go to the Nursery Tent. But Brother and Rikku did. Gippal remembered how it was when they first entered the tent. His first thought about Brother had been, 'what a loser.' But Rikku..... he had thought she was an ice princess. Her skin was pale and creamy smooth, unexposed to the harsh dessert sun and heat. He'd wanted to get to know her.  
  
But somehow it hadn't worked out. He'd tried so hard to make her like him. To impress her and make a new friend. It never worked. He was always cocky and always said the wrong things. She didn't seem interested in him at all and even seemed to look down on him. He wanted to be friends, but ended up being mean to her.  
  
Right now, he would make everything all right. He'd explain that he liked her and wanted to be her friend. "Hey, Rikku," he said again. He reached out and put one hand on her shoulder, resisting the urge to shake her and tease her about sleeping under so many blankets in the dessert.  
  
Her body didn't feel right. Gippal frowned and pulled the blankets back slightly, meaning to take a peak at her face and try and wake her up somehow before everything was over. A dummy stuffed with sand was revealed.   
  
It was dressed in Rikku's clothes and tied atop it's head area was a ponytail of blond hair. Gippal trailed his fingers through the hair, recognizing it as Rikku's hair. He had pulled the same hair many times, liking the feel of it between his fingers.  
  
"Huh?" he murmured aloud, looking around the room in confusion. "Rikku?" he called out. He opened her dresser, noting her missing clothes and coming across a piece of white paper with sloppy writing on it. "Looks like my writing," he murmured. Then he read the note.  
  
Complete with spelling errors, it said that she was going back home. Back to the Moonflow. Rikku had decided to run away from home. Gippal shook his head, silently admiring her spunk. Then he realized what it meant. She had gone across the desert and was probably dead by now.  
  
He ran out of the tent, ignoring the happy laugher of the others. The sun was setting, dappling the sands with ruby shadows. "Rikku," he whispered. He ran towards the open desert, taking a couple of steps. "Don't you know that it's dangerous out there?" He felt sadness welling up inside of him. She was probably already dead.  
  
Tears spilled out of his eyes, trailing down his cheeks. He should have went to her earlier. He shouldn't have cared what the others thought of him. He shouldn't have thought of his reputation. He wiped the tears furiously and turned back to the tent. He had to tell Maize. Then they'd launch a search for her.  
  
He heard something, or thought that he did. He spun back around, running in the direction of the scream. Was there really someone out there? Did he really just hear a call for help? He started running, his feet sinking into the sand and propelling him foreword rapidly. "Rikku!" he shouted, knowing somewhere deep inside that she was probably much further away by now.  
  
His emerald gaze fell onto a gigantic sandworm and despair almost washed over him. There was no one calling for help. It was just a fiend. He turned, feet numbly taking him back towards the tent to get Maize.   
  
"HELP MEEEEEE!" a voice tinged with fear and despair called out.  
  
Gippal turned, racing towards the sandworm. He pulled a short belt knife from it's sheath on his side and rammed it hilt deep in the fiend's leathery hide. It spun, orientating on him quickly. The knife was wrenched out of his hand and he was left facing it defenseless.  
  
"You won't hurt her!" Gippal snarled. His hands curled into fists and he stood defiant against the fiend.  
  
It wasn't really that scary. The saliva, silvery blue and slimy, rained heavily from it's mouth and it didn't have any teeth. "You're drooling all over yourself," Gippal said haughtily.  
  
In time with his words, it closed it's mouth, creating what looked like a beak. Then it attacked. Things started moving differently. Time seemed to move slower and faster at the same time.   
  
Gippal sprang back from the sandworm as it tried to skewer him through the top of his head. He felt a sharp pain on the left hand side of his face..... more specifically, in his eye. He staggered, feeling hot liquid pooling down his face. "Yeach, sandworm drool," he heard his voice say distantly, but he knew that wasn't right. He could taste the liquid on the corner of his mouth. It tasted coppery....... metallic and felt like fear. He could feel it flowing from his body.  
  
He was off balance and couldn't seem to focus. Everything seemed askew. The sandworm came at him again and he barely managed to move in time. He couldn't stay on his feet though. He feel down to his knees beside the sobbing form of Rikku.  
  
He tried to focus on her, but his vision wasn't right. He couldn't see clearly. "Don't worry, I'll protect you," he whispered close to Rikku. He had to make those words true. He got back to his feet, refusing to think about why he couldn't see. He refused to touch his face. "I made this for you...." he said thickly, pulling a ring from his pocket. "I wanted to be friends....." He knelt down, slipping the carefully crafted piece of metal into Rikku's hand. Then he charged towards the fiend, his entire world swaying.  
  
  
  
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Rikku was beyond scared. Then she heard him. "I'll protect you," he said. He pushed something into her hand, closing her sand-burned fingers around the piece of warm metal. "I wanted to be......" she heard him say.   
  
She spun, looking to see who had come to rescue her. She spotted the spiky blond hair, and a blurry image of his face. Her tears were blurring her vision. She reached up, wiping at them with the back of her hand. However with her vision clear, all she could see was the back of his head. He had turned towards the sandworm.  
  
The sandworm had it's tail high in the air. Time slowed. She found herself on her feet, moving towards the boy. She wanted to know who it was who had come to save her. Then the tail fell and everything blacked out.  
  
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"It must have thought we were dead, Rikku," Gippal murmured. He half picked up her limp form, taking her back towards the tent. He slipped in unnoticed. Everyone was still laughing and playing. He brought Rikku to her room, noting as he did so her roughly cropped blond hair.  
  
He slipped her into her bed. "See, you're good now," he murmured, getting rid of the dummy. He wouldn't tell anyone what had happened. That would just get the both of them in trouble. His face throbbed, but he ignored it, pushing a handful of one of Rikku's shirts to his face.   
  
"Who.....?" Rikku whispered, reaching up towards him.  
  
Gippal didn't answer. He didn't even hear her. His head felt swollen and stuffy. He didn't even realize she was awake. He leaned down, pressing his lips against her cheek. "I'll protect you, Rikku," he whispered.  
  
Then he staggered out of the room.  
  
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Rikku felt like crying when she woke up. She was back, safe and sound in her bed. She slipped out, examining herself in the mirror. Her hair was cut unevenly, but that couldn't be helped. She supposed that she was lucky to even be alive and...... a little punishment for her stunt was both welcome and expected.  
  
However, it never happened. When she got into the main section of the tent everyone was talking. "Did you hear about Gippal?" one girl asked. Rikku shook her head, wondering what the pretty irritating boy had done.  
  
"He got in a fight with a sandworm," the girl said.  
  
"So?" Rikku asked. "I want to know who rescued me -"  
  
"So? He lost his eye, that's what!" the girl said sharply. "He was a bloody mess. Maize took him away earlier. Rumor has it that he isn't coming back here."  
  
Rikku felt confused. Why had Gippal been fighting fiends? Didn't he realized that was dangerous? She tightened her hand around the ring she had been holding when she woke up. It had been dangerous to run away from home, but she had gotten out all right. Except for one thing..... who had saved her?  
  
"Isn't this wonderful!" Brother crowed, distracting her from her thoughts. "No more Gippal!"  
  
And somehow that felt wrong. "Aren't they going to let him come back at all?" she asked. Maybe he had seen who had saved her. Heck, maybe he had been saved by the same person..........  
  
"No, not at all," the girl she had been talking to said. "And that's really too bad. Gippal is kinda like our unofficial leader ....... the commander of the Bikenel Al Bhed."  
  
"Feh! That loser?" Brother cackled. "I don't think so, Nhdalla!"  
  
The girl shrugged. "Whatever you say, Brother." She turned and walked away, leaving Rikku unnoticed.   
  
"Someday......" Rikku promised. "I'll find you and thank-you properly. I promise."  
  
~~~**owari**~~~  
  
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Author's notes;How did Gippal really lose his eye? Hmmmm, I don't know. I figured I'd write something about what might have happened. I also am assuming in this fic that Rikku used to live on the Moonflow ( based on the assumption that she had to live near water to get attacked by a water based fiend.) Nhadalla is there because I wanted her to be.  
  
Thanks for reading,  
  
Kissa-chan 


End file.
